


Back-Up Plan

by kageygirl



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Cliche, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-03-15
Updated: 2005-03-15
Packaged: 2017-10-20 06:28:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/209742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kageygirl/pseuds/kageygirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sheppard needs more saving on some days than others.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Back-Up Plan

Of course, Rodney knew something was going to go wrong. Any mission that started as well as this one had was practically an open invitation for events to progress rapidly downhill at the earliest possible and least convenient opportunity.

So when a hand reached out and dragged Rodney into a darkened alcove of the Machiian royal palace, he was startled, but not surprised. If anything, he was surprised by the degree to which he was _not_ surprised, which was incontrovertible evidence that his life had gotten far too exciting lately.

That it turned out to be Major Sheppard doing the dragging was only mildly reassuring. Especially when Sheppard clamped a hand over his mouth before he'd gotten further than, "Major, what--"

"Shh," Sheppard breathed into his ear.

Rodney suppressed a shudder at the feel of the major's warm breath. Rodney looked Sheppard in the eye and nodded, deliberately, and Sheppard slid his hand away. He didn't back off, though--he had Rodney practically pinned to the wall, his body a line of heat against Rodney's.

Rodney wanted to ask what the hell was going on--well, okay, what he _really_ wanted was for Sheppard's move to seem a little more like completely unprecedented foreplay and less like "evading an angry mob," although the chance of that appeared slim.

Sheppard's grip was still tight around Rodney's upper arm, and the look in his eye as he stared back at Rodney was the really focused one that he got when things were going very, very wrong.

In such cases, Rodney was usually occupied with trying to keep them from being horribly killed, so he'd never really had a chance to evaluate the look in question all that closely.

It was an intensely attractive look. Which was unfortunate, given its history of being coupled with the threat of imminent and painful death.

He knew better than to ask, though, because Sheppard's instruction had been more than clear. Besides which, the commotion making its way toward them down the hallway from which Rodney had been snagged answered it well enough.

Strangely, though, as angry mobs went, this one sounded both decidedly feminine and borderline gleeful.

Sheppard pressed them both back into the corner, blocking Rodney's line of sight to the hallway, but giving him a damningly good view of Sheppard's neck, right where it disappeared under the collar of his t-shirt. The major had been sweating a little, it seemed, and Rodney shut his eyes, which removed the temptation of looking at Sheppard's neck but made the smell of sweat and soap and detergent even more enticing.

When the sounds had died away, Rodney pushed Sheppard away--reluctantly, but for his own sanity--and asked in a low voice, "Okay, what the hell was that about?"

Sheppard darted a glance to the hallway, then looked back to Rodney. "Do you know what's been going on here tonight?"

"No, I don't--I've been locked up in the apothecary, being forced to pretend that biochemistry is an actual science." He looked past Sheppard, but the hallway was still clear. "Why, what's going on?"

Sheppard crossed his arms over his chest. "It turns out that today is the first day of their big Spring Festival."

Oh, yes--Rodney remembered now; they'd been invited to some sort of meal, but the Machiian researchers had requested his presence, and he'd been glad enough of the excuse to skip the whole "is there lemon in this?" discussion that he hadn't paid much attention to the description of the festivities. "So, what--you stepped on some toes and now they're trying to lynch you?"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Sheppard winced and glared at Rodney at the same time, which was both impressive and oddly endearing.

"You're welcome." Rodney smirked in return.

Sheppard kept up the glare for a moment, then shook his head. "No, apparently, it's a custom at the Spring Festival for the unattached young ladies of the province to sample the spring wine and..." Sheppard broke off, scratching the back of his head and looking away from Rodney.

"And what?" Rodney had a horrible suspicion, and the embarrassment on Sheppard's face made it seem even more likely.

Sheppard sighed. "And find themselves nice unattached men to--attach themselves to." His stance grew awkward, and Sheppard folded his arms again. "For the night."

Rodney rubbed a hand over his mouth, though he knew he couldn't hide his smile in the slightest. "And now you're on the run--"

"Not _running_ ," Sheppard said emphatically, shifting his feet.

"My mistake--you're _hiding_ from a pack of women who want to... _attach_ themselves to you." Rodney mimicked Sheppard's significant pause. "For the night."

"Yes." Sheppard lifted his head quickly. "I'm just trying not to--cause a diplomatic incident."

"Yes, yes. How very responsible of you." Frowning, Rodney asked, "Teyla didn't warn you about this?"

"She and Ford left early to visit her friends in the town. Besides, she said she hasn't been here since she was a kid, so maybe she didn't know about it."

"Or maybe she thought you could take care of yourself," Rodney said lightly, and Sheppard pressed his lips together.

"Look, _I_ didn't do anything. This time," Sheppard added quickly, before Rodney could respond, and narrowed his eyes at Rodney. "So maybe we can save the jokes until _after_ we get out of here. Without doing anything to upset the nice people who've agreed to trade their medicinal herbs with us."

Rodney rolled his eyes. "I'm finding it hard to conjure up any sympathy for you and your overwhelming powers of attraction, Major."

"Rodney--" Sheppard broke off as the sound of what was apparently a mob of amorous and admirably determined women echoed down the hall again. Panic flashed across his face briefly, and he started to herd Rodney back into the corner.

"Oh, for god's sake," Rodney muttered. He took hold of Sheppard's shoulders and pushed him out into the hallway, not stopping until he'd backed the major against the opposite wall. The women were off to his left, he could tell, but he kept his eyes on Sheppard.

"McKay! Son of a--"

Rodney ignored the outrage in Sheppard's voice, ignored the excited chatter coming down the hallway, and kissed Sheppard.

Sheppard froze in surprise, but Rodney teased his lips apart, stroking softly with his tongue. Sheppard got with the program, cupping the back of Rodney's head and setting his other hand on the small of Rodney's back. The kiss grew warm and unpredictable as Sheppard applied himself to it. Rodney was so involved in following the glide and slip of Sheppard's mouth that he almost missed the disappointed murmurs fading away from the hall.

Rodney drew back when they were alone again, and Sheppard looked at him with wide eyes, running his tongue over his bottom lip. Sheppard said, softly, "So that was just..."

"Saving your ass." Rodney tried to breathe evenly and make eye contact. Selling the lie was all about eye contact, he'd always heard.

"Right." Sheppard still had a hand on Rodney's neck, and he brushed fingertips over Rodney's skin. "But, if you needed to do it again..."

"--On the way back to your room." Because he could hardly leave Sheppard to wander around unattended, not with intoxicated Machiian women rampaging through the halls.

Sheppard nodded. "On the way back to my room... you would, right?"

"Of course." Nonchalant, he was completely nonchalant, why wouldn't he be, there was nothing to see here... except that Sheppard didn't seem to be getting that, because he was still looking at Rodney. Not just looking at him--looking at him with dilated eyes, and licking his lips again, and...

"Good." Sheppard nodded again. "And if you maybe needed to follow me into the room--in case someone was hanging around outside..."

"That's--I can certainly do that, yes." Rodney's mouth had gone dry, because Sheppard was _really_ not following the rules here, Sheppard was stroking his fingers over Rodney's neck, just exactly as if no one had told him he shouldn't do that sort of thing just for fun, because some people might get the wrong impression about such a thing.

"Cool," Sheppard said. He leaned in close, so close that his lips brushed Rodney's ear, and murmured, "Maybe we should just plan for you to stay the night. To be on the safe side."

 _... Oh._

In which case, apparently, Sheppard _did_ know what he was doing. Which was--good. Very good.

Surprising, but--good.

Rodney turned his head a little, feeling Sheppard's stubble rasp against his cheek. "As a contingency plan," he said in a low voice, and he felt Sheppard's smile against his skin.

He turned his head a little further, and Sheppard met him halfway, and they were kissing again. Which was an excellent idea, just in case anyone was still in the hall watching them.

Such a good idea, in fact, that they kept doing it all the way back to Sheppard's room.

Just in case.


End file.
